Valve-grinding machine



Dec. 15, 1925- 1,566,055 H. c. WENGEL ET AL VALVE GRINDING MACHINE I 2 Sheets-ant 1 Filed Dec. 31 1924 1 m W w 8 7 W a 40? INVENTORS,

A TORNEY.

Dec. 15, 1925- 1,566,055

H. c. WENGEL ET AL VALVE GRINDING MACHINE Filed Dec. I51, 1924 2 Sheets-Shut 2 J6 A) #2 g I o E 10 1/ I; a I f2 45' R w 1 47.;141

Patented Dec. 15, 1925.

UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY C. WENGEL, F BIRMINGHAM, AND JOHN B. MICHAEL, OF SELMA, ALABAMA.

VALVE-GRINDING- MACHINE.

Application filed December 31, 1924.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it, known that we, HARRY G. enant .tIlCl JOHN B. MICHAEL, citizens of the United States, residing at the city of Birmingham, county of Jefferson, and city of Selma, in the county of Dallas, respectively, and State of Alabama, have invented a new and useful ValveGrinding Machine, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters and figures of refer ence marked thereon.

This invention relates to a machine of the type that is adapted to be used for grinding valves, such as those commonly known as plug-cocks, the invention having reference more particularly to a grinding machine that is specially adapted for tnding the angle-cocks comprised in railway air-brake equipment.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved grinding machine of such con.- struction as to be simple and inexpensive, to economically supply the requirements of small shops, while permitting the addition of grinding facilities at minimum cost for other shops having need of a. multiple machine to do a relatively larger amount of grinding.

Another object is to provide a grinding machine which shall be so constructed as to be depended. upon to grind the contact surfaces of plug valves and their casing or valve bodies accurately, and automatically after the machine is started for operation, an aim being to eliminate faulty grinding resulting in leaky valves when the grinding had to be done on machines not specially adapted to perform its operations with the accuracy required, in the finishing and grinding of plug-cocks used for cutting off the flow through air, steam, and water pipes.

A further object is to provide an improved grinding machine unit that shall be so constructed as to be adapted to be attached to a common work-bench for support, where dismantling and preparing the valves to be ground and also re-assembling the valves after the grinding operations may be carried on by one workman who can conveniently direct the grinding operations, an important object being toeliininate the cost attending the transferring of valves to a distant grinding machine and b ck to an a sem ling bench,

Serial No. 759,165.

A still further object is to provide an improved grinding machine, of either single or independent multiple spindle type, which shall be adapted to be supported on either a work-bench or a wall shelf adjacent to a work-bench. to save floor space which may be valuable for large machines, which improved machine shall be substantial and reliable, and durable and economical in use.

1th the above-mentioned and other objects in view, the invention consists in a grinding machine unit adapted to have other similar units connected therewith and to be mounted on various supporting structures, each of the units being adapted to be stopped or started at will and being so constructed as to change the positions of a valve body relatively to its plug-valve when the latter is rotated; and, the invention consists also further in certain novel parts and combinations and arrangements of parts, as hereinafter particularly described and further more definitely defined and claimed.

Referring to the drawings,Figure 1 is a side elevation of a grinding machine or one unit of a multiple machine; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional elevation of the machine, partially broken away; Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the machine; Fig. t is a top plan of Fig. 3; Fig. is a fragmentary horizontal section approximately on the line VV in Fig. 1; and Fig. 6 is a fragmentary elevation with parts in different positions relatively to Fig. 1.

Similar reference characters in the different figures of the drawings indicate corresponding elements or features of construction hereinafter referred to in detail.

In carrying out the objects of the invention any suitable or desired frame-work may be provided, but for the special purposes of the machine a flat frame plate 1 is preferred which has bolt holes 2 therein to permit the plate to be securely bolted to a work-bench 3. The frame plate preferably is integral with the middle portion of a cylindrical spindle housing 4 which is normally vertical and has a suitable bearing portion 5 on its top. A spindle 6 of improved construction is provided and suitably fitted to rotate in the housing 4:, and it has a head portion 7 that extends out over the top of the housing for support and has a guard 8 that extends about the upper portion of the housing to exclude abrading substance from the housiug interior, bearing balls 9 preferably being arranged upon the bearing portion to directly support the spindle head. The spindle has a relatively small central stem 10 that projects upward beyond the head portion and has an axial screw-threaded stud 11 thereon, to which the rotary member or plug of a valve or stop-cock may be secured to be rotated in grinding operations. The lower end of the spindle has a shaft projection 12 thereon that is provided on its end with a detachable collar 13 which supports a bevel pinion 14- rotatably on the projection, with space between the pinion and the lower end of the spindle housing. The hub of the pinion has clutch members 15, and aclutch sleeve or collar 16 is arranged on the shaft portion 12- between the housing 1- and the pinion and has clutch members 17 thereon to engage the clutch members 15, the sleeve being slidable on the shaft portion and adapted to rotate the spindle by means of a spline 18 suitably arranger. The sleeve has a stop pin 19 fixed thereto to engage a projection 20 that is fixed on the housing, for stopping rotation of the spindle when the sleeve is disconnected from the pinion. The sleeve has a. circumferential groove 21 into which a shifter fork 22 extends, for shifting the sleeve, the fork being supported on a pivot pin of; with which a frame member 2% is provided, the latter being a part of the machine frame, and the fork has a suitaole operating lever 25. The spindle 6 may be su'li'iciently heavy to maintain its proper position but may be provided with a circu1nferential groove 96, and a guide stud 27 may be screwed in the wall of the housing 4 so as to extend into the groove to prevent the spindle from being pulled upward in operation, or the spindle may be otherwise axially guided.

The pinion 1% is driven by means of a bevel gear wheel or pinion 28 secured to a driving shaft 29 which is arranged below the pinion 15land rotatably supported by suitable frame members such as hangers 3t) and 31 secured to the frame plate 1, and the shaft 29 may be driven by. any desired means, a. a belt. pulley 32. The driving shaft may be of any suitable length suflicient to drive the spindles of other grinding units that may be comprised in a multiple machine.

A tripper shaft is rotatively mounted also in the machine frame, preferably higher than the driving shaft and rearward or the spindle housing a, being a suitable distance below the main frame plate 1, and the shaft has a suitable tripper cam 34 fixed thereto. The shaft may be of suflicient length to comprise tripper portions of other units of a multiple 'machine. The shaft 33 has a gear wheel 35 secured thereto that is in mesh with a gear wheel 36 which is secured to the shaft 29, the gear wheels preferably being alike diametrically, but as it is desir able that the spindle and the tripper shaft rotate at different speeds, the pinion llshould be either larger or smaller diametrically than the wheel 28 that drives it.

A tubular guide 37 is vertically secured in a suitable opening in the plate 1 and guides a tripper rod 38 above the cam 31- to be operated by the cam. The upper portion of the rod 38 preferably has a screwthreaded bore 39 therein receiving a screwthreaded rod extension 40, whereby the rod is rendered longitudinally extensible or contractible, the rod having a head 41 on its top and preferably having also a locknut e2 thereon engaging the top of the main part 38 of the tripper rod. The frame plate 1 has an arm or post 43 rigidly connected thereto and it supports a pivot bolt or pin to which a tripper arm 45 is connected, the arm having a fork 46 on its end that is arranged above the head portion 7 of the spindle and straddles the stem or projection 10, whereby to periodically lift a valve body while a plug-valve is being ground therein. in post at? is suitably supported, preferably by the plate 1 and it extends upward adjacent to one side of the arm 4-5 and has a stop bar #5 on its top to be engaged by the valve body, wherebyrotation of the body is prevented.

In practical use, while the machine is at rest a plug-valve secured to the projection it), usually being screwe lonto the stud 1.1,the plug-vaive being in the form of a trlmcatcd cone, the tripper arm is supported upon the head ell, Hour of emery and oil or other abrading substance is applied to the surface of the plug-valve, and a valve body is placed on the plug-valve, after which the extension -10 may be adjusted to permit the fork $6 to clear the valve body, so as to permit the plug-valve to properly ground in the 'alve body, the. body being stopped against the linger t8, an angle-cock beingshown by broken lines in Fig. 3 of the drawings to illustrate the above mentioned arrangement. Upon starting the machine, with the clutch sleeve 16 in connection with the clutch pinion 14, the spindle is rotated and consequently the grinding operations begin, the cam 3% forcing up the rod 38 and causing the arm to be tripped up once upon each revolution of the tripper shaft 33, the fork 46 alternately pushing up .and lowering the valve casing or body to insure thorough distribution of the abrading substance, which is necessary to prevent unequal grinding of the surfaces of the plug and its casing and preventing circumferential scratching of the surfaces, so that uniform and true grinding of the surfaces result. Since the rotary speed of the spindle maybe either faster or slower than that of the shaft 33, dependlit) till

ing upon the relative diameters of the pinions 14: and 28, the valve body as it is periodically lowered does not drop into contact with the plug-valve at the same point in succession relatively to the rotary cycles, which would tend to cause slightly untrue surfaces, but the successive contacts are made at different points in the cycle of rotation of the plug-valve which insures the most perfect fitting together of the contact surfaces of the valve and the casing or valve body. In operating a single unit the driving gearing may obviously be stopped at will to change the articles to be ground, but in operating a machine having a plurality of units one man may attend to all the units and may stop either one of the units by means of the shifter lever 25 while permitting operation of the remaining units of the machine, so that loss of time is reduced to the minimum. When the clutch sleeve 16 is disconnected from the clutch pinion 14: the sleeve is moved up to the bottom of the housing 4 and the stop pin 19 comes into contact with the projection 20, causing stoppage of the spindle to prevent possible injury to the workmen while changing valves, and also preventing rotation of the spindle while the plug-valve is being screwed onto or off of the stud 11, the drive shaft 29 continuing to rotate.

What is claimed as new is:

1. A valve-grinding machine unit comprising a hollow cylindrical housing vertically arranged and having a horizontal frame plate rigidly connected thereto for support, the frame plate being provided with frame members, a spindle rotatably mounted in the housing and having a device on its top to rotatably carry a plug-valve, the spindle having a shaft portion on its lower end that projects beyond the housing, a bevel pinion rotatably connected with said shaft portion and having clutch members thereon, a clutch sleeve slidably splined 011 said shaft portion between the housing and said pinion to engage said clutch members, means to control the sleeve, a drive shaft rotatably supported by the frame members and extending under said pinion, a bevel drive wheel secured to the drive shaft in mesh with said pinion, a tripper shaft rotatably supported in the frame members and geared to the drive shaft, a cam secured to the tripper shaft, a frame arm and a vertical guide supported by said frame plate, a tripper rod arranged in said guide to be operated by said cam, and a forked tripper arm pivoted to said frame am? and engaged by said tripper rod to intermittently lift a valve body from contact with the plugvalve.

2. In a valve-grinding machine, the combination of a cylindrical housing having a frame plate on the middle portion thereof to vertically support the housing, the plate having bolt-holes therein to secure it in place, and a spindle rotatably arranged in the housing and having a head portion extending over the top thereof, the head portion being supported upon said top and having an annular flange thereon extending downward and about the upper portion of the housing, said head portion being adapted to rotatably carry a valve thereon, with drive gearing having connection with the lower portion of the spindle.

3. In a valve-grinding machine, the combination of a vertical cylindrical housing having a projection on the outer side of the lower portion thereof, the housing being provided with a frame, a spindle arranged in the housing and rotatably supported thereby to carry a valve, the spindle having a shaft portion extending downwardly beyond the housing, a bevel clutch pinion rotatably mounted on said shaft portion and having a clutch device, a sleeve splined on said shaftportion and having a clutch member to engage said clutch device to rotate the spindle, the sleeve having a stop pin thereon to engage said projection to stop the spindle, a shifter fork supported by said frame and controlling said sleeve, a drive shaft supported by said frame, and a bevel wheel secured to the drive shaft in mesh with said pinion.

4-. In a valve-grinding machine, the com bination of a vertical cylindrical housing having a frame plate on the exterior thereof, a spindle rotatably arranged in the housing and having a projection on its top to carry. a valve, a drive shaft, tripper shaft rotate ably arranged below said plate and geared to the drive shaft, a cam secured to the tripper shaft, a tubular guide secured in the frame plate above the cam, a trip rod arranged in the tubular guide and supported on the cam to be operated thereby, the upper portion of the trip rod having an extension ad justably secured thereto, said extension having a head on its top, a frame arm supported on the frame plate, a tripper arm pivoted to the frame arm and supported upon said extension head to be controlled thereby, the tripper arm having a forked portion to control a casing on the valve, and gearing connecting the spindle with the drive shaft.

In testimony whereof, we aflix our signatures on the 8th day of December 1924.

HARRY c. WENGEL. JOHN B. MICHAEL. 

